Days ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls, RJD leader and Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial face Tejshawi Yadav speaks to The Indian Express on his pre-poll promises, friendly fights in the Opposition camp and the politics of doles, among other issues. Excerpts:
* Your 10 lakh jobs promise is seen to have changed the narrative in your favour in the 2020 polls. Do you sense the same happening with your promise of one government job for each family, though your rivals have said it is not financially viable?
You need to create jobs if you want a healthy economy. Employment links livelihoods with health, education and overall development. We see job creation as an investment and not as a cost. We can create many employment opportunities in the social sector, especially health and education, and while these would generate large-scale employment, they will also improve and strengthen our schools, healthcare centres, and water and electricity supply. It will have a multiplier effect.
We have been working with experts on the cost aspect and on how to implement it. We want to change the mainstream narrative that seeks to squeeze employment and sees workers as expenses. We look at job creation as an economic engine.
* What is your take on the politics of doles and counter-doles, especially in a state that has an annual revenue of Rs 65,000 crore and an outstanding loan of Rs 3.5 lakh crore. Where will the money come from?
Firstly, I would not call them doles. It is very much required. One cannot ask people to wait for bigger reforms to bear fruit when they are struggling to meet their basic needs. We have to provide them with interim relief till infrastructure and employment catch up. This is about basic human dignity and immediate survival.
While we believe in both immediate relief and long term transformation going hand-in-hand, the NDA calls it ‘revdi (freebies)’. They did not do much in the last four-and-a-half years and are now opening coffers in a bid to sway voters in their favour by offering doles, especially the Rs 10,000 each to a crore-plus women.
On the other hand, we have offered much better and sustainable support of Rs 2,500 to each woman (under the proposed Mai Bahan Maan Yojana) so that they can support themselves while improving their financial condition. The NDA’s promises are nothing but attempts at political manipulation.
* Now that you are officially the Mahagathbandhan’s chief ministerial face, what are you telling voters?
Jobs, jobs and jobs. Bihar needs this and it is what we are committed to delivering. We saw an overwhelming response to our 10 lakh job promise in 2020. When I was the Deputy CM between August 2022 and January 2024, about 5 lakh jobs were realised.
We also want to deal with migration in a phased manner and want the sons and daughters of the soil to build Bihar. We want politics of development and not of distraction and polarisation.
* How do you see the friendly fights among Mahagatbandhan parties in 11 seats?
Bihar is complex. It is not a state where one formula works everywhere. Each constituency has its own unique dynamics, history and social fabric. If people in a particular constituency or region have varied leanings and aspirations, they must have (political) options available.
This said, we are united in our larger objective of ousting this government but within this unity, there is a scope of considering local factors. The most important thing is that we are fighting the real opponent together and not each other.
* Given that the Congress succeeded in getting its choice of seats and the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) had its way in getting its chief Mukesh Sahani projected as the Deputy CM face of the Mahagathbandhan, do you think they have been tough allies to deal with?
Everyone fights elections to win. This is the nature of electoral politics and there is nothing wrong with it. Each party has its choice of seats and brings its strength and perspective to the alliance.
We are aware that our success depends on each other. Unity always does not mean uniformity, but we are on the same page on core issues like jobs, development, social justice and removing the khatara (rickety) NDA government. The aggression of our allies is directed at political rivals and not at each other.
* How do you see AICC Bihar in-charge Krishna Allavaru’s proposal to have a Muslim Deputy CM? How do you accommodate the aspirations of allies like the CPI (M-L) Liberation?
We will think of inclusivity and representation if we come to power. We believe in ensuring representation to reflect Bihar’s diversity and every section of society will have a voice in our government. However, such decisions are not to be made in advance for political gains and will be taken collectively by alliance partners depending on the kind of mandate.
I can promise that, unlike the current government that practices exclusion and tokenism, our government will work to empower all communities. I very often say that with me, all people of Bihar will become the CM.
* Recently, charges were framed against you and other members of your family in connection with the IRCTC case. How do you see this?
I am not worried as it is just a part of a relentless witchhunt. When they (the NDA) cannot defeat us politically, they use Central agencies as weapons. It is their standard playbook. We have been at the receiving end of this for decades. My father (RJD chief Lalu Prasad) faced it before and now, I am facing it. Tomorrow, they will target anyone who stands up to them.
There is no substance in these cases. Every time elections approach, they get revived or new ones appear. It is politically motivated persecution and the people of Bihar understand this. We have full faith in the judiciary. The courts will decide the cases on merit. We are not intimated by all this.
* How do you see Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor? Why do you refrain from speaking about him?
What is there to say about him? Can you tell me one concrete thing he has done for the state? He is just a media creation and not a mass leader. He makes and sells plans to others. He is a consultant who works behind the scenes for anyone who pays him and has nothing more to offer.
Asking questions and setting narratives is easy when you do not have responsibility and no track record to defend. Real politics is about connecting with people, understanding their pain and delivering solutions. It is about standing by them in their struggles and not just appearing during elections with clever sound bites. The people of Bihar are wise and can tell the difference between someone who talks and someone who works.
* Kishor often takes jibes at your educational qualifications. How would you respond to his allegations that Lalu is only keen on making his son the CM and not interested in the lives of Bihar’s youth?
Time and again I have said degrees are important but knowledge does not emanate from them. I had to leave studies behind to pursue my passion for cricket. However, since the day I entered public life, I have been building and refining my knowledge on everything that forms the core of progressive politics.
My track record is out there for everyone to see and judge, so is my father’s contribution to Bihar and the country. Critics cannot digest that he heralded a social revolution to demand inclusion, representation and upliftment of the historically marginalised.
* Having served as Nitish Kumar’s deputy twice, how do you rate his 20-year tenure?
Two decades is a long time and the results must speak for themselves when someone has been in power for that long. The promises, vision and work should be evident, especially because there is a so-called double engine government in place.
They claimed that having the same party in the state and at the Centre would transform Bihar. The Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) came and announced what seemed like huge financial packages for Bihar ahead of the 2020 polls with great fanfare. Where did all that money go and what do we have to show for it?
The last few years have been abysmal. Governance has completely collapsed and it seems like the CM is not in control anymore. Decisions are being made elsewhere and Bihar is being run by remote control from the Dilli darbar.
* Does it hurt that your elder brother Tej Pratap Yadav is contesting against your candidate?
As I said earlier, everyone is free to present their views to the people and seek support. Democracy allows for different political choices and we respect that process.